I gather that the team would like to come back to DC, but I frankly don't know where they could build unless they're willing to dispense with big parking lots. I live within easy walking distance of RFK and, from a Capitol Hill perspective, it would be naïve to think the Redskins could simply build bigger and keep everything the same. The Anacostia corridor is coming back to life. It is going to be a premier residential and entertainment area all the way from Buzzard Point to Bladensburg. About half of the former RFK North parking lots have already been rebuilt into a youth sports complex and playground for little kids. What to do with the rest of the parking lots, RFK stadium itself and the Armory and DC General (now closed) sites is a big question. But devoting most of the acreage to vast swathes of asphalt parking lots -- this right along the river -- would be too stupid for even DC to consider. Just downstream, the Nats and DC United stadiums are doing just fine with minimal parking. They rely primarily on metro access. The question is whether lard-butt NFL fans could accept such a solution. You can't tailgate on metrorail.
Then there's the name issue. DC's political class doesn't like "Redskins" and Snyder doesn't want to switch to "Ashamed to be American Snowflakes." I applaud Snyder for sticking to his guns on this. He shouldn't allow himself to be bullied. Unfortunately the current Virginia pols may be just as dictatorial about the name. My guess is that the team will stay in Landover for the foreseeable future.
It will move to ashburn once the new metro opens.
I think there are a few Federal Departments whose headquarters buildings could be bulldozed for a productive economic alternative. :)
I have occasionally wondered how Cooke’s son would have fared as owner. I never really understood his decision to squeeze him by putting the team up for auction. Maybe he believed his son was going to win the auction.
The best place for the new stadium was Potomac Yards on the Virginia side just before crossing the 14th street bridge into DC. I think it was the most perfect spot, but, as we know, everyone had a hissy fit including the nearby residents, so it wasn't built there.
So instead of the stadium, there is now a ton of retail with all the big box stores with full parking lots. Every time I drive past it or stop there, I smile, because these nearby residents did not want a stadium that dragged in 50,000 spectators 8 times a year with an occasional concert and an occasional college football game. They did not want the traffic. So now, they have thousands and thousands of cars daily driving through the neighborhood instead. I think they took the wrong deal.
I read an article in the Post about 10 years ago and they interviewed a number of residents about the post stadium fight and what ended up eventually in the space instead. Everyone single one of them stated they thought they made the wrong decision.
That was a joke, right?